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Child alert: Severe wasting
Also known as severe acute malnutrition, severe wasting is an overlooked but devastating child survival emergency.
Severe wasting is the most lethal form of undernutrition, and one of the top threats to child survival. Around 1 in 5 deaths among children under 5 are attributed to severe wasting, which is caused by a lack of nutritious food and repeated bouts of diseases such as diarrhoea, measles and malaria, which in turn compromise a child’s immunity.
Unlike famine or starvation, relatively few people have heard of severe wasting – also known as severe acute malnutrition – even though it affects around 13.6 million children globally under the age of 5. Ongoing conflicts and climate-related emergencies meant that this number was already likely to grow. But with so many countries heavily reliant on exports from Ukraine and Russia, the war in Ukraine is threatening to plunge the world even deeper into a food crisis. Meanwhile, the price of life-saving ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) is projected to soar in the coming months, placing even more children’s lives at risk.
Wasting isn’t only rising in countries facing humanitarian crises – countries across a variety of regions, including some relatively stable, have seen an increase in child wasting by more than 40 per cent. For example, in Uganda, child wasting has increased by around 60 per cent since 2016. Yet despite the scale of the problem, relatively small additional investments in treatment for severe wasting could lead to an exponential reduction in child deaths.
The reality is that we already have the knowledge and tools to save hundreds of thousands of lives each year from this excruciatingly painful condition. Ending global hunger and malnutrition won’t happen overnight. But there is plenty we can do right now to stop children dying from severe wasting.
Crisis at a glance
What is severe wasting?
Wasting, defined as low weight-for-height, is the most visible and lethal type of malnutrition. Severe wasting, also known as severe acute malnutrition, is its most deadly form. It is caused by a lack of nutritious food and repeated bouts of diseases such as diarrhoea, measles and malaria, which compromise a child’s immunity.
How is it impacting children?
Severe wasting turns common childhood illnesses into killer diseases. Children who are severely wasted succumb to those diseases because their bodies provide virtually no protection against the bacteria, virus or fungi that infect them. They die because their digestive systems can no longer absorb nutrients. A severely wasted child is reduced to the most basic bodily functions. It takes all their energy just to keep breathing.
How many children are affected?
Globally, at least 13.6 million children under the age of 5 suffer from severe wasting, which is responsible for 1 in 5 deaths among children under age 5, making it one of the top threats to child survival. A severely wasted child is up to 11 times more likely than a healthy child to die of common childhood illnesses such as pneumonia, the single largest infectious cause of death in children worldwide.
An escalating problem…
Countries across a variety of regions have seen a rise in wasting levels since 2016. There’s no single reason for this alarming rise. But cases are rapidly increasing in areas affected by conflict and climate shocks, precisely where the risk of child mortality is already highest.
If we fail to significantly reduce the number of affected children, severe wasting will continue to limit the extent to which we can reduce child deaths from all causes.
…and a largely invisible one
About a quarter of children suffering from severe wasting live in emergency contexts that generate news headlines, often with images of excruciatingly emaciated children. But severe wasting is most concentrated among the youngest children in the most underserved areas, both rural and urban, far from the news cameras.
Nine out of 10 of those who receive treatment are caught in emergencies, even though three-quarters of children suffering from severe wasting live in non-emergency contexts. This is primarily because the children in complex emergencies face the highest risk of death – especially displaced, destitute children who are exposed to disease.
But it’s preventable and treatable
A relatively small additional investment – by donors, governments and other financial instruments – would dramatically reduce child death rates. And it would bring irrevocable socio-economic benefits to children who need help desperately. Reaching virtually every child in need can be achieved with just $300 million in additional funding – 0.1 per cent of total overseas development assistance spent in a year.
In 2020, about 5 million children were treated with cost-effective, ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) that is proven to save lives. But the COVID-19 pandemic and armed conflicts are driving up the price of RUTF, which will likely halt the scale-up of treatment of wasting. More funding is essential to maintain the supply of RUTF.
Highlights
Most people have never heard of wasting, also known as ‘severe acute malnutrition.’ But it is one of the leading underlying causes of preventable deaths in young children. Conflicts, and climate crises that destroy access to healthy diets, are causing that number to rise. But even in fairly stable countries, child wasting has been on the rise.
‘Severe wasting: An overlooked child survival emergency’ looks at some of the causes behind this rise, the rising cost of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF), and the need to massively scale up the early prevention and treatment of child wasting
FAQ
Immediately after making a donation, each contribution is directly transformed into food and hope.
With just 60 cents, a child receives a nutritious meal and escapes malnutrition.
Ensuring that more children can go to sleep with a full stomach and a peaceful heart.
Your help has an immediate and concrete impact.
Yes. You can direct your donation to a specific community.
You can sponsor a specific project, or you can even organize a new project with us where you have the opportunity to experience firsthand how you can help save lives alongside your loved ones.
There are multiple ways to help, ready to achieve the greatest possible impact.
1-Donate
With a monthly or one-time donation,
2-Your Own Campaign
You can launch your own fundraising campaign within Food Promise with just a few clicks, either on your own behalf or on behalf of a third party (a family member, friend, or organization (club, school, company, etc.).
This is essential, as many people are unaware of the situation of children around the world. You will help amplify the message!
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3-Sponsor a community
You can help an entire community and interact with members of that community and our volunteers. Receive regular videos of the cooking and serving process, and make video calls.
You will be part of an incredible project!
4-Special Projects: Together with the Food Promise team, you can prepare and fund a new project in communities in extreme poverty with a minimum of 80 to 100 children.
You’ll have weekly meetings with the team to organize the project. You’ll be able to participate in project decisions, including the types of food, cooking methods, and serving methods. You’ll be in constant communication with the community.
5-Product Donations:
If you sell products, you can donate some or all of them to children without access to food.
Together with Food Promise NGO, you can organize a campaign with your products to spread the word and make your company part of this mission.
You can’t imagine the impact your help has. We’re not exaggerating when we say we’re saving lives.
The lives of children who lack access to food and die from malnutrition.
The impact is immediate, and you can see it in several ways.
1-You’ll receive videos and photos of specific actions, which may even include a personalized thank you poster dedicated to you, your company, your organization, school, club, brand, etc.
2-Or you can even join the weekly video calls we hold while we’re in action. Cooking, Serving, Eating.
3- Also, for the more advanced programs, you can participate in coordination calls with local teams and experience the day-to-day life of the NGO from the inside.
We operate in places where our interventions prevent the deaths of children under 5 years.
Places of extreme poverty and lack of government assistance.
Orphanages in remote locations and rural areas where climate conditions make it difficult to grow food.
We provide direct food assistance to save the lives of children under 5.
We develop local leaders, people who were born and lived in the communities we serve.
We recruit volunteers to cook and serve, usually from the same villages. We train them to do things according to our “standard of care.”
We buy rice, vegetables, and protein; sometimes we also buy dishes. We organize the kitchen, including pots, spoons, and other utensils.
We choose and prepare the place where the food will be served, with the children seated.
We use tablecloths and clean plates, and we carry out our mission.
Food Promise ONG is registered in the USA and authorized to provide international aid.
We can operate in any country.
We are an NGO audited under American law.
Food Promise is a Non-profit organization registered under in USA law EIN number 39-3856559 apply for tax exempt status under 501(C)(3) Of The Internal Revenue Code. Organization registrered number 10308472 SR 20253778067
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